5 Questions: Judy Weaver on 910Arts And Art Accessibility

As Denver Arts Week continues on through November 16, we’re highlighting a figure who helped shape one of the city’s most recognizable cultural corridors. Judy Weaver, co-founder of the Art District on Santa Fe and co-developer of 910Arts, has been a driving force behind transforming a once-vacant stretch of Santa Fe Drive into a thriving hub for galleries, studios, and public art.

Weaver’s career has never followed a straight line. She grew up in a rural community, moved to New York, built a career in academia and national policy circles, and then stepped into affordable housing, arts development and gallery work when she settled in Denver. That willingness to take risks is a throughline in her story. It also shaped how she thinks about the role of art in a city: not as a luxury, but as something people need access to in order to feel connected to one another.

At 910Arts, Weaver helped create one of the few affordable live-work complexes left in the Art District. And through her gallery, Kashi Kari, she has continued to make space for emerging artists. For Weaver, accessibility is a practice grounded in mentorship, shared knowledge and community stewardship. Even now, she’s thinking about the long-term question every arts district faces: how to maintain affordability and authenticity as development pressures rise.

This week, as part of our ongoing 5 Questions series, we asked Weaver about what Santa Fe has gotten right, what still needs work and what keeps her energized as a gallery owner in her 80s. We also asked how Denver can ensure that art remains something everyone can access, not just those who can afford studio rent. Her answers remind us that the district didn’t grow by accident. It grew because artists, neighbors and organizers insisted on belonging, place-making and joy.

You were one of the original group that founded the Arts District on Santa Fe. Is it living up to its potential, and what would you change, if anything?

The Art District on Santa Fe began as a collaborative effort among artists who were being pushed out of their spaces in other parts of Denver because of development and increased rents. The area between 6th and 12th on Santa Fe had many empty buildings in the early 2000s and the City of Denver was working to activate this area. 

As artists learned about the opportunity to turn these buildings into art spaces, the street began to come alive. First Friday Artwalks were started, initially in only the 700 block of Santa Fe. Now thousands of art lovers descend on Santa Fe from about 5th to 12th each First Friday of every month of the year to enjoy art in all ways: visual, culinary, music, theater and movement.  

I served on the Art District Board as the Community Liaison from about 2006 to 2014. During this time, the State of Colorado established the Statewide Creative Art Districts program. The Art District on Santa Fe, along with Salida, on the Western slope, were the very first cities to be selected for this program. This allowed us to apply for and receive our 501c3 status and develop a Five-Year Plan. During the same period, I served on the Board of the Santa Fe Maintenance District and worked to maintain the infrastructure throughout the district. Business Improvement Districts (BID) have now taken over that task. This structure has enabled the Art District to thrive and grow into what it is today.

The Santa Fe Arts District is the most walkable arts district anywhere, but that can be challenging because of deteriorating infrastructure, making navigating busy streets seem like a hike in the mountains. Change is happening all around us: new high-rise buildings, developers eager to take advantage of a thriving community and always traffic considerations. But as artists, we keep creating art while trying to hold on to our funky art spaces, keeping it an interesting place to visit. It is important for artists to own their spaces and members of the Art District, such as 910Arts, are always strategizing to make that happen.  

Artists are finding it challenging to afford Denver’s high rents. How does a place like 910Arts, which you also helped establish, support artists and what more can be done?

910Arts emerged from a conglomeration of buildings which housed the 7Up Bottling Company and included horse stables from the 1890s. The space was transformed into an artist sanctuary with affordability as the goal. There are deed-restrictive units, which help keep some spaces as affordable as possible. The 910 community is a supportive group who work together to keep costs as low as possible.

We see the emergence of artists coming together and forming Artist Co-Ops, which is another way of addressing the high rents. There are also a lot of vacant buildings with empty storefronts in the Denver area. Building owners are reaching out to artists to not only dress up those windows but utilize the empty space for their studios. The downside to that is that artists will have to move if the space gets rented. An illustration of that is the Evans School on 11th in Denver’s Triangle neighborhood and 16th Street downtown area. Finding a long-term, secure and affordable space to create art in and around Denver takes persistence and a lot of networking.

How can we make the arts more accessible to everyone in our community?

Accessibility, especially for emerging artists, has always been a goal of mine. Kashi Gallery addresses that by dedicating a wall where emerging artists can show their art while learning the ropes of storytelling through their creations. This wall features a new artist every month, and the artist has the opportunity to have a workshop of their choosing during the Third Friday Artwalk. Everyone is invited to participate. The Art District on Santa Fe also hosts three-month residencies for emerging artists.

Santa Fe Art-walks, that take place every First Friday during all seasons, bring in thousands of art lovers who visit the galleries and artist studios, talk to the artists, sign up for workshops, all while learning more about the creative community and how to participate. Many of the artists that end up showing their art on the Kashi Kari Story’s Wall came by on a First Friday.

You are in your 80s and own and operate Kashi Kari Gallery. What keeps you going?

Being a part of a creative community that includes all ages and cultures feeds my soul. I learn new things every day from working with young artists and different cultures. Visitors from all over the world visit the gallery, and I try to learn what brings them to seek out the Art District and to learn a bit about them. Engaging in the world instead of “retiring” from it keeps me wanting more.

What are you most looking forward to during Denver’s Arts Week?

Denver’s Arts Week has always been a special time. It is when we launched the Alley Beautification project. A three-block area of alley in the Art District on Santa Fe was transformed with murals pairing artists with youth groups. Many of those murals still remain. Along with the special Artwalks, free museum visits, special concerts, film festivals, there are art-related smaller projects happening throughout the city. This is what I find special about Arts Week.